Glenquarry Goddess: Ghost Town

Today I had one of my bestest ( is that a real word? not sure but is should be in my opinion) days out. The significant other and I went to a place called Joadja which is located here in the Southern Highlands and is the site of an old settlement and shale mining and refinery ( apparently the best quality shale in the world). To save you the effort of going to Wikipedia, here is a potted history courtesy of the interweb thingy.......

Ghost town once a thriving kerosene mining settlement

Located 31 km north-west of Mittagong, and 138 km south-west of Sydney, in an isolated valley, is the historic village of Joadja, established by the Australian Kerosene Oil and Mineral Company in the late 1870s to facilitate the exploitation of the vast shale deposits in the valley walls. The origins and meaning of the town's name are uncertain, though 'valley of plenty' has been suggested.

The first European party in the area was that lead by ex-convict John Wilson. They were sent twice in 1798 on exploratory treks by Governor Hunter with the object of accumulating factual data about the southlands to discourage convicts who were escaping and heading south in the belief that China was only 150 miles away.

Wilson had been living with the Aborigines for some years and had almost certainly been in the area prior to the expedition. On their first journey they appear to have followed Joadja Creek to its junction with the Wingecarribee River, just near the future townsite.

Benjamin Carter was grazing his cattle in the valley in the 1840s. His son, Edward, discovered the shale and a dispute ensued over the rights to exploit it. Edward Carter succeeded and began mining in 1874. The shale was excavated and heated in brick retorts to draw off the kerosene which was then condensed and purified. He sold the produce to the Australian Gas Light Company. It was hauled up the steep inclines by bullock teams then carted by five-tonne wagonloads to Mittagong railway station.

The Australian Kerosene Oil and Mineral Company was formed in 1877. They built a refinery, a railway line to Mittagong (which operated from 1880 to 1903) and began to erect a town for their employees. Coal was also mined with railway trucks being hauled up the steep inclines by rope.

Joadja's population passed 400 in 1879, well in excess of other Southern Highlands towns. A post office opened in 1878. There was soon a theatre, a store, a butcher's, a bakery and a school of arts. Joadja was also one of the first towns in the colony to be connected to the outside world by telephone!!

( funny then, here in 2013 there is no mobile reception!)

The miners were largely experienced men from Scotland, perhaps enticed by the Scottish manager. They were housed in cottages made of local bricks.

The remnants of the Bakery

In 1878 the employees extracted 5200 tons of shale. With the introduction of a mechanical coal-cutter in 1881 (the first to be used in NSW) output doubled to 28 000 tons in 1882. By 1890 it had increased to nearly 37 000 tons. However, reserves dwindled and went into a sharp decline after 1893.

Employees were laid off. The post office closed in 1900 and operations ceased in 1903. The company closed and destroyed the plant and a fire swept through the town. A few residents stayed on to work orchards originally established by the mining company. The property was sold in 1911. Attempts were made to reestablish operations in the 1920s and 1930s but to no avail and Joadja became a ghost town.

But not any more, the new owners, Val and Elisa are operating again, and as I said we had the most wonderful time on the guided tour , which was due to take 90 mins and we ended up over 120mins, but nobody was bothered by the time we were having so much fun finding out about history just off our doorstop.

They are also resurrecting the Scottish tradition of whisky distilling ( even though the new owners are of Spanish heritage) we even got a private tour and saw the new still and the lovely oak barrels just imported from Spain, which were full of sherry.

Anyway enough of my blabbing on, here are some pics, and if you were looking for a day trip away from Sydney ( its only 90 mins) this is a great place, they have picnic tables, a kiosk (licensed too!) and you can also camp onsite. I plan to do that later and do my own ghost tour at night. I can also vouch for the presence of heaps of Wallabys and Wombats and apparently there are platypus in the creek. Additional bonus, if you come to visit you can also visit GG headquarters as well! :-)